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This afternoon, the city of Albuquerque’s Environmental Health Department (EHD) has issued an apology to 13 area restaurants that it improperly tagged with red stickers since the end of January.

The establishments were improperly graded because of a glitch in the software calculations that determine restaurant or other food service facility’s score during health inspections. In order for an establishment to receive a red sticker it must score below the 79 percent needed to pass inspection.

Food safety inspections are carried out by the Consumer Health Protection Division of the EHD, in accordance with Federal Food and Drug Administration guidelines.

“In most cases, the incorrect calculation did not result in a downgrade, but there were several situations in which the incorrect score lead to a downgrade that was unwarranted,” said Mary Lou Leonard, director of EHD. “We sincerely apologize to the owners and staff of these facilities and to the community.”

The calculation error has been fixed, and all downgrades since the new system was implemented in late January have been reviewed. The 13 food establishments are listed below.